simmons



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

- J. P. SIMMONS & S. ADAMS.

MAGAZINE GUN.

No. 275,085. Patented Apr. 3, 1883.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. P. SIMMONS & S. ADAMS. MAGAZINE GUN.

No. 275,085. Patented Apr. 3,1883.

UNITED STATES PATENT JOHN P. SIMMONS, OF SAN FRANCISCO, AND SAMUELADAMS, OF ANTIOCH,

' CALIFORNIA.

MAGAZINE-GUN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 275,085, dated April 3,1883.

Application filed January 10, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, JOHN P. SIMMoNs, of the city and county of SanFrancisco, and SAMUEL ADAMS, of Antioch, Contra Costa county, State ofCalifornia, have invented a Magazine'Grun; and we hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

Our invention relates to certain improvements in breech-loadingsmall-arms of that class known as magazine-guns, and it consists in animproved construction of the breech mechanism, so that the cartridge istaken from the magazine, and carried up and inserted into I 5 thebarrel, the follower is locked when in place,

and the gun is cooked, all by a novel mechanism which will be more fullyexplained by reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1, Sheet 1, is a longitudinal section,

showing the guard-lever thrown down and breech mechanism half open. Fig.2 is a section with the guard-lever up and the breech mechanism closed.Fig. 3 is a side view of the same parts. Fig. 4 is a transverse section2 of the chamber, showingthe grooves by which the breech-block isguided. Figs. 5, 6, and 7, Sheet 2, are perspective views of thebreechblock in different positions. Fig. 9 is a view of thelocking'arms. Fig. 10 is a view of the guard -lever, showing theformation of the head. Figs. ll and 12 are views of the carrier indiiferent positions. Fig. 13 is a view of the arm W. Fig. 14 shows thespring which engages with the rear end of the carrier to hold it up ordown.

A is the barrel of arifle, having the magazine B fixed beneath it in themanner usual to this class of magazine-guns.

O is the stock, which is connected with the barrel by the intermediatebreech-frame, D, within which the reciprocating follower or breech-blockE moves to open or close the rear of the barrel. Below this follower isthe carrier F, which is depressed to the level of the 4 5 magazine toreceive the cartridge, and is elevated to the level of the barrel, sothat the cartridge may be transferred from it to the barrel.

The construction and operation of the follower, the carrier-block, and alocking mech- 5o anism for the breech-block or follower, and

other details of construction, comprise my invention.

The breech-block or follower consists of a solid head, E, wide enough tofill the chamber in which it travels in the frame D and thick 5 enoughto have a countersink, a, made at its front end, sufficiently large toreceive the head or flange of a cartridge. Flanges G project slightly ateach side of the breech-block, and fit into shallow grooves or channelsH, formed in each side of the chamber D, within which it moves, so thatit is guided in its forward and backward movements and is held firmly inplace.

The shell-extractor I is fitted into the top of the breech-block, asshown. A bar or extension, J, extends backward from the breechblock, andthrough this the firing-pin K extends, its front end projecting throughthe countersink a, so that when the hammer falls upon its rear end itwill discharge the cartridge in the usual manner. This extension J alsoacts,when the breech-block is withdrawn, to raise the hammer and cookthe piece in the usual manner of this class of guns. The rear end of thebreech-block, at each side of the cxtension J, forms shoulders L, whichhave an arc the radius of which is the locking-arms, to be describedhereinafter. Below the breeclr block are the projecting points or lugsM, be- So tween which the end N of the operating-lever swings to movethe breech-block forward or back. A pin, 1), passes through thebreechblock near the bottom of one of the shoulders L, its i'routendprojecting through the bottom 8 of the countersink a. This pin ispressed back by the flange of the cartridge-shell when the breech-blockis moved forward, and presses the cartridge forward into the barrel. Atthe same time the hook at the front end of the 0 elastic shell'extractorpasses over the flange of the shell and falls down in front of it, sothat when the shell has been discharged the retraction of thebreech-block reaches its farthest backward limit, the rear end of thepin 1) strikes a shoulder on the locking-arm, which forces itforward,and its front end forces the shell out of the chamber or countersink aand relieves it, so that itmay be tossed out.

The carrier F has its rear end formed as 100.

shown at 0, so as to fit into a corresponding socket in the rear of thechamber D, and this forms the pivot around which the front endmoves,instead of the carrier-blocks moving vertically in a slot orchannel which is fitted for it. This carrier is formed with two sides,as shown, each one extending back in the form of an elastic arm, P, andunited rigidly with the cylindrical rear portion, 0, so that these sidearms act as springs and cause the parts F to clasp the cartridge firmlywhile conveying it, but allow them to separate when the cartridge is tobe forced into the barrel. A projecting lug, Q, a t-the lower side ofthe end is acted upon by a spring, It, within the stock of the gun, andthis steadies the carrier'and holds it in position, when it is either upor down, until it is to be moved again. The sides P approach each otherfrom the rear toward the front, and the end N of the lever T movesbetween these sides, the fulcrum-pin U being below it, so that when thelever is thrown forward this arm N moves back into the wider part of thespace between the two arms, and thus allows the sides of the head]? toclose upon the cartridge that has entered from the magazine, and hold itfirmly while the carrier is moved up to a point opposite the barrel ofthe gun by the further movement of the lever. That part of the leverthrough which the fulcrum-pin U passes has a small lug, V, upon itslower side. An arm, is pivoted upon the samepin U, and has a projection,X, against which the lug V strikes after the cartridge is fixed in thecarrier, and this raises the front end of the arm, which elevates thefront of the carrier to bring the cartridge opposite the barrel. Whenthe lever T is brought back to its position, ready forfirin g, theextensionN moves forward in the tapering space between the sides'P, soas to separate them, and thus release the cartridge, ready to be forcedinto the barrel by the follower.

Yare thelocking-arms, which hold thebreech block in place by havingtheir forward ends forced up behind the shoulders L, before described,while the rear end, where the arms are united to form a solidsemi-cylindrical portion, fits into a corresponding concave in the solidmaterial of the frame. A lug or projection, Z, extends downward andforward from the rear portion, and is engaged by a notch, Z, in thecurved back of the lever T just before thelatter is brought up againstthe stock, and after the breech-block has been forced forward, so as toclose the barrel behind the cartridge. The last part of the movement ofthe lever throws the forward ends of the arms Y up behind the shouldersL of the breech-block, and thus locks the latter firmly in place. Asliding block, a, is fitted into a slot through the rear of the chamberD, and when the lever T is thrown down the first movement draws the armsY down so as to release the breech-block. At the same time the rearportion of the lug Z, pressing against the front of the slide 0, causesit to press the hammer back from the end of the .firing-pin, andrelieves the breech-block and its extension J from'its pressure. Theprincipal value of this device is as a safeguard against the firing of acartridge before the breech is fully closed. This is done by thepressure of the lug Z against the slide 0, which keeps it back, so thatif the hammer acci dentally falls it will strike the end of the slideand not the firing-pin. As soon as the arms Y are thrown up to lock thebreech-block the slide is releasedand the hammer may fall upon thefiring-pin. A continuation of the movement of the lever causes the end Nto enter between the lugs M beneath the breechblock and draw it back,the extension J forcing the hammer back to the position of fullcock. Asthe breech-block reaches its farthest rearward position the rear end ofthe small pin 1) strikes a shoulder, y, of the arm Y, and is thus forcedforward,and its front end pushes the shell out, so that it may be thrownout, as previously described. During this part of the operation thecarrier has been standing in line with .the magazine, and the sides wereseparated when the lever was closed and the end N forward, so that acartridge from the magazinecouldenterit. Astheleveristhrown back thehead of the shell is allowed to come back to the ends of the arms Y,which now stand in a line behind the magazine, and the sides F closeupon it, so as to hold it firmly.

A continuation or" the movement brings the lug V upon the lower part ofthelever against the lug X of the arm W, and this forces the:

carrier up to a point where the cartridge will stand in line with thebarrel, ready to be forced in when the breech-block is moved forward bythe reverse movement of the lever. This movement carries the arm Nforward between the sides P, and spreads them so as to release thecartridge and allow it to be forced forward by the advancingbreech-block, while at the same time the breech-block is moving over theinclined rear portion of the sides F of the carrier, and is thus forcingit down out of the way while pressing the cartridge into the barrel.When the breech-block has been forced against the rear of the barrel, soas to close the opening and seat the cartridge in the chamber, the notchZ in the curved head of the lever T engages the lug Z of thelocking-arms Y and forces the latter up behind the shoulders L of thebreech-block, so as to form a practically solid breech-block extendingfrom the rear of the barrel to the rear of the chamber D, against theupper part of which the rear of the locking-block fits in a direct linewith the shoulders L. As the arms Y are carried up behind the shouldersL the slide 0 is released, so that it may be moved forward, and thehammer will then be allowed to fall upon the firing-pin when it isdesired to discharge the gun.

The sides of the carrier F are cut away toward the rear, so that thebreech-block will ICO readily force it down when it moves forward, andthe right side, which lies next to the springplate and opening throughwhich the magaploy a finger-lever having a pin working in grooves in thebreech-braces, and also to provide the finger'lever with a slottedprojection which receives a pin on a lever connected by a link to thebreech-pin base.

Having thus described our invention, what weclaim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. In a breech-loading gun, thelongitudinally-moving breech block E, having guides G, fittingcorresponding grooves in the sides of the chamber D, and the shouldersL, in combination with the locking-arms Y, with the lug Z fitting thenotch Z in the lever T, whereby the front ends of the arms may be thrownup behind the shoulders L to lock the block, or thrown down to releaseit, substantially as herein described.

2. In a magazine-gun, a split carrier pivoted in the receiver, theinsides of its arms converging toward the front, and an operating-leverpassing between the arms of the carrier and operating, when moved in onedirection, to spring said arms apart to admit a cartridge from themagazine, and permitting them to spring together to hold the cartridgewhen moved in the opposite direction.

3. In combination with the carrier F, movable vertically about itshinged or pivoted rear end, as shown, the arm W, having at one end aconcaved shoulder or lug, X, and its other end curved or turned up, thelever '1, having the arm N, and the lug V, at its pivotal point adaptedto engage with the lug X upon the arm W, substantially asset forth.

4. In a breech-loading tire-arm, the longitudinally-sliding breech-blockE, having the shoulders L, the locking arms Y, moving around the hingedrear end, the elastic-sided adjustable carrier F, also moving about ahinged rear end, the arm \V, and the guardlever T, with its circularhead notched at Z, and having the lug V, all combined substantially asand for the purpose herein described.

In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands.

JOHN P. SIMMONS. SAML. ADAMS.

